Tuesday, March 30, 2010

I chose the lye soap over the popular choice of Fels Naptha because it seems to be more pure. You can use any bar soap you would like I suppose, I may try castile soap next time. I bought the lye soap at my local hardware store, (little pricy @ $3.79), cut it in chunks and chopped it in the blender the best I could. I could have grated it, which would probably would have worked better in the end but patience is not my best virtue.

Use 2 tablespoons of detergent per load. I also made some fabric softener with 1 cup vinegar, 2 cups baking soda and 4 cups of water. This is also supposed to help with static cling.

My Thoughts:

So, I have been using this detergent and fabric softener for the past week. I am pretty impressed with the detergent. I used it on a load of towels the first time just in case it left spots or something crazy. I was very impressed with the spot removing power of this mixture. Reagan had a red shirt with a glob of gum stuck on it, I mean it had been washed and dried on there, hard as a rock stuck, (unfortunately I didn't take a pic cause I really didn't think I would get this out). I have never tried to get gum out before so I thought I would give my new laundry potion a test. I added about a tablespoon of detergent and just enough water to a bowl for the spot to soak. I checked the spot after 30 min to an hour and it was actually starting to loosen and dissolve. I couldn't believe it! I let it continue soaking and then made a thicker paste out of the detergent and let that continue to sit on the gum. The gum came out however, it did leave a bit of a stain, but since it was on the inside of the shirt you can't tell. Pretty good to get gum out and not even damage the shirt or fade the color!!

Now this fabric softener I'm not totally sold on yet. After the ingredients are mixed together the baking soda separates to the bottom. I shook it up and filled the liquid fabric softener holder in my washer. When the clothes were done the baking soda was still in the fabric softener holder, which I didn't like. I have since then used just vinegar and it seems to work ok, the clothes are not quite as soft as I like, but they don't really seem staticy. And in case you are wondering they don't smell like vinegar when they are finished either. So there ya have it, my science project for the week. Has anyone else tried homemade detergent or fabric softener?

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Here is a picture of all of the things I bought this weekend to make homemade cleaning products. First I made dishwasher detergent. I combined 1 cup of Washing Soda and 1 cup of Borax and shook it up.....that's it, no kidding! Use 1-2 tablespoons per cycle. I also used white vinegar in the place of rinse aid. I have washed two cycles of dishes using this recipe and I have to say, it seems to work just as well if not better than my old detergent. EZ PZ, cost effective and eco-friendly!!
Stay tuned, next up is laundry detergent :)

Saturday, March 20, 2010

I am starting a quest to eliminate some of the chemicals we consume and use in our home. It is a little overwhelming to think of all of the things we eat and use that are filled with chemicals. I am not going no-deo extreme or anything, (as of now), but I would like to change some of the basics. 1 Cor. 6:19-20 speaks of your body being the temple of the Holy Ghost; that being said I want to take care of my body to the best of my ability. Below I share a little of my view on food. I have been doing some on-line research about cleaning products and such the last couple of days. I plan on making a couple of those cleaning recipes this weekend. I hope you will follow along on this cleaner and greener journey and please feel free to add any comments or tips!

You ARE what you eat
Growing up I always heard the saying, "you are what you eat". This saying has become more real to me over the past year or so of my life. I am quickly approaching 30 and it would frighten me to know how many chemicals I have consumed in my life time. My friend Kerri really brought this to my attention when she told me of an old school friend of hers that is a vegan/dietitian and she was going to have this friend make out a "plan" to basically change her eating habits. Kerri, I love you, but when you told me what this chic eats and doesn't eat, I thought you were nuts. However, since then, I have been more aware and conscious of all of the "non-food" products in our food. I have started reading the labels of food ingredients and it blows my mind of the junk in everything I eat that I can't even pronounce. Seriously, I nursed both of my children for months just to hand them a cheerio or gold fish at 10 mo. old that has about 4 recognizable ingredients, something about that is just not right. I'm not sayin' I'll never eat another Big Mac or my kids will never have another Chicken McNugget, (which btw did you see the article on MSN the other day, 30 ingredients in a McNugget, you just thought it was chicken). I just don't want my kids to become accustomed to being "chemically feed." Over the past few months I have started changing the obvious and easiest things first. I try to buy all natural chips, snacks and juice and diary. I can't do this cold turkey and I may never be "all natural" but I do plan on eliminating what I can. Any one that has tips or suggestions, please share!

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Kerri and I had yet another swap. I traded her a chandelier for this bench.

I had to do a little sanding and some painting but I think it turned out pretty well. Originally I was going to make a skirt around the bottom and put baskets under the bench to hold toys. Now that it is painted I kinda like it the way it is so for now I'm going to leave the skirt off.

Then I saw a pillow similar to this one (sorry, I can't remember whose blog it was on to give credit).

I used part of a canvas drop cloth to make the pillow and some fabric scraps for the flower and button.

Then I folded the fabric scraps and stitched them together, placed them on the canvas and sewed them down. I did two layers of this and frayed the edges. Then I put the button on to cover the ends.

Now I have a nice bench on my once long, empty wall. However, I still need something above the bench. Don't worry, I'm thinking!

Saturday, March 6, 2010

We had be-u-tif-ful weather today and it reeeallly made me want spring to come oh so quickly. I wanted to share these lovely rooms which also made me think of spring. And just in case you were wondering, this is not my house, (a girl can dream) all of these pics are from Country Home magazine.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Mason will be 14 mo. old on the 8th. He finally decided to take a few first steps 2/20 and he still just stands, claps his hands and takes 2 or 3 steps, then drops down to crawl. I had to lure him with his paci but I finally managed to get a couple of pictures of him walking.

Reaganisms

Reagan is quite observant for a 5 year old. She has been saying some pretty funny things lately. Here are a few that made me laugh.

Reagan was looking at her Bile Sunday morning and spells, "H-O-L-Y B-I-B-L-E", then asks, "mom, what does that spell?" Me: Holy Bible. Reagan: Mom, are there un-holy Bibles?

She saw a commercial for ProActive, the anti-acne products, and said, "mom, hurry I need some of this to get rid of my freckles!" Seriously, she has like 3.

Reagan was wanting J to buy some batteries for one of her toys and he told her he would and forgot. So, she asked me to get some. I asked her if she knew what kind she needed and she said, "yeah, straight one's."

I nearly lost it on this one: "Mom, why when you turn into a grandpa or grandma do your teeth turn yellow?" thank goodness grandpa and grandma were not around!

About Me

I am a southern, Jesus lovin' girl who's blessed with a handsome, hard workin' hubby and 2 red-headed cuties, simply living life more abundantly. Here you will see a glimpse into our home and everyday lives.